Temperatures begin slide with freezing rain possibly ahead

Tuesday

Apr 1, 2014 at 10:02 AM

By Jim.Hayden@hollandsentinel.com(616) 546-4274

Monday’s high of 68 degrees was the warmest it's been in Holland since Oct. 12 when the high was 79 degrees.It will also be the warmest for quite a while to come, with temperatures not breaking into the 50s until Monday.Today’s morning temperature of 51 degrees could be the high for the day as temperatures drop to around 39 degrees by 4 p.m., according to the National Weather Service in Grand Rapids.Tonight’s low will be about 30 degrees.Wednesday will be partly sunny with a high near 43 degrees with a chance of rain and snow at night.Expect freezing rain Thursday before 8 a.m., changing to rain until about 2 p.m. when it changes back to freezing rain. The high will be about 39 degrees with a low about 35 degrees with freezing rain or rain before 8 p.m., then rain.Friday’s high will be about 49 degrees with rain and wintery mix in the evening with a low about 31 degrees, and a high around 40 degrees on Saturday with rain and snow.Temperatures begin to climb again on Sunday with a high near 49 degrees and a high about 52 degrees on Monday.The average high for April 1 is 52 degrees with a record high of 83 degrees in 1986 and a record low of 18 degrees in 1964.Though Monday was warm, it wasn’t a record. The record high for March 31 is 74 degrees in 1967.Last month was the fourth coldest March in Grand Rapids since 1892, and the fifth coldest in Muskegon since 1896, according to the weather service.Lake Michigan is about 38 percent covered in ice, according to the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. Most of the ice is against the eastern shore and in the north where the ice remains solid.Overall, the Great Lakes are 67.4 percent covered with ice, with 89.6 percent of Lake Superior still covered; 78.5 percent of Lake Huron; 63 percent of Lake Erie; and 12.3 percent of Lake Ontario.This winter in Holland remains in second place for snowiest on record since 1905 with 151.4 inches of snow. The record is 159.9 inches in 1969-1970.